'Dutch Tap Water' carafes by Lotte de Raadt; photo by Maarten de Raadt

To raise environmental awareness and draw attention to the green credentials as well as far-reaching benefits of relinquishing the bottle and switching back to the tap, the young Dutch designer and recent Design Academy Eindhoven graduate Lotte de Raad has created this series of three simple glass carafes whose lid references the origins of the water they’re intended for. (more…)

Earlier last week, architects Bjorn Martenson, Sonja Nagel and Jan Theissen of Amunt practice have been announced the winners of the first prize in this year’s edition of AR House Awards for their passively heatable and partly pre-fabricated single family home project, ‘Just K, Zero Energy House‘.

Organised by Architectural Review and held at the Laufen Forum, the AR House Awards were awarded for the second time. Here, the winning trio explains why they decided to build the house as a solid wood construction, what is the difference between designing a public building or a private house and what does the award mean to them. (more…)

Berlin-based design studio ett la benn has created a series of eco-friendly hand-moulded vases, pots and pendant lights which were presented at the ‘Poetry Happens’ exhibition at Ventura Lambrate in Milan. (more…)

Wed 20.4.

'Hemp Chair' by Werner Aisslinger, shown in Milan at the Ventura Lambrate during this year's Salone Internazionale del Mobile; photo by Michel Bonvin

The increasing focus on eco-friendly and sustainable products has led to many ingenious and, sometimes, unexpected inventions frequently incorporating state-of-the-art technology. With this in mind, Berlin-based architect and designer Werner Aisslinger has recently designed a ‘Hemp chair’ – ‘world’s first monobloc chair made of natural fibres’.

AMF Waste-to-Energy Plant at night. With a light installation by "realities united" the plant's smoke stack are transformed into making it puff smoke rings, serving as a measuring stick of CO2 emission.

Located in an industrial area near the city center the new Waste-to-Energy plant will be an exemplary model in the field of waste management and energy production, as well as an architectural landmark in the cityscape of Copenhagen. The roof of the new Amagerforbraending is turned into a 31.000 m2 ski slope of varying skill levels for the citizens of Copenhagen… (more…)

German manufacturer Walter Knoll’s latest product is the ‘Cuoio Lounge Chair’designed by EOOS. The fact that the chair can be separated into its constituent parts and is recyclable ensures its sustainability. The footstool and the comfort cushion for your back complement the delicate piece. A sheepskin rug thrown over the chair makes it even softer and is another accessory available from Knoll.

Elise Gabriel, working in collaboration with TheGreenFactory, has created ‘The Zelfo Embrace’, a collection of furniture that explores the material possibilities of Zelfo, a 100% biodegradable cellulose paste.

'Liga' chair by Elise Gabriel & TheGreenFactory

Funded by VIA, the Paris-based organisation set up to support and promote emerging French designers, Gabriel has designed a chair, trestles and lamps, which illustrate the patented material’s capacities to lend shape to, and to maintain, complex three-dimensional structures that are strong and light.

'Ossos' trestle by Elise Gabriel & TheGreenFactory

The patents for Zelfo are owned by Omodo GmbH, Germany, and TheGreenFactory has initiated a Europe-wide R&D programme to industrialise applications of the material, which is made from recycled materials (papers, agricultural wastes) and fast-growing plants (hemp and miscanthus).

The London and Konstanz (Germany) based architects Krausschönberg comleted this affordable prefabricated house in 2007 for a couple with two children in Hamburg. One of the clients requirement was a connected interior space which still offers individual freedom to the occupants.

'House W' by Krausschönberg Architects, Photo by Ioana Marinescu

Here is what the architects explain:

“The building is separarted into an upper and a lower part. The upper volume consists of rooms of various heights corresponding to their individual function. Bedrooms, bathrooms, the dressing room and the rooms for the children all require different heights and project into the lower living areas. This common space is organnised by these staggered volumes without being interrupted by partitions.”

'House W' by Krausschönberg Architects, Photo by Ioana Marinescu

“Walking around the house takes one through a variety of rooms on the upper level, orientated to the garden as well as to the inner atrium. The walls and the floors of the individual upper rooms are built of sustainable CNC-cut timber panels. These do a variety of things: They consitute the finish; define spaces and functions; help insulate the building; are recyclable; create a comfortable internal environment; and offer a cost-effective building solution.

The lower ground floor is cut into the ground creating direct views into the garden while standing up, or offering a feeling of security while sitting down.”